Shock actuated responsive mechanism for vertical fluid valve assemblies

ABSTRACT

A vertical shock responsive fluid valve assembly capable of automatically closing a fluid valve in response to earthquake forces or other shock forces of a predetermined magnitude. The vertical shock responsive valve assembly has a flow control mechanism having a cradle that holds a movable ball in a recess at a point perpendicular in relation to a horizontal base plate, where the ball can be rotated 360° in any direction during seismic actions or other shock forces and rolls out of its recess at a predetermined force such that it ricochets off a housing cover covering the cradle and pushes a trip fork mechanism that is mounted on a pivoting parallelogram lever mechanism, thereby releasing a swing arm which has a disc on the end that functions as a plug for the hole in the valve body to interrupt gas or fluid flow therein.

This application is a continuation-in-part of application Ser. No.10/041,102 filed on Dec. 28, 2001 now pending, which application is acontinuation-in-part of application Ser. No. 09/668,003 filed on Sep.21, 2000, now U.S. Pat. No. 6,394,122 issued May 28, 2000.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

This invention relates to valves and valve devices for automaticallyclosing a valve to stop the flow of a fluid in a conduit when the deviceis subjected to shock and vibration forces such as experienced during anearthquake. The improved shock sensor and actuation device uses gravityto aid in activating a valve closure mechanism.

2. Description of the Prior Art

Various mechanisms to sense shock and vibration to activate the closingof a valve exist in the art. Such shock actuated valves generally areinserted in a fluid flow line, have a rotating valve element for openingand closing the fluid flow line, and have a mechanism to maintain anopen valve position until such time as a shock or vibration of specifiedcharacteristics is sensed by a device which then causes the valve toclose.

The present invention relates to shutoff valves which use a weight inthe form of a ball to sense shock or vibration which force displaces theball from a normal rest location to actuate a mechanism to cause a valveto close. Reference to U.S. Pat. No. 4,915,122 issued Apr. 10, 1990shows a shock actuated valve which uses a ball motion to actuate a valvedue to earthquake forces and similar shock forces. The improved devicemodifies the pedestal on which the ball rests to allow gravity force toact on the ball once it has been moved from its position of rest to aidin the actuation of the shock actuation control mechanism. Themodification of adding a step to the pedestal upper perimeter surfaceimproves the accuracy for the elapsed time for the valve to be actuatedonce a specified force has been sensed. In previous art mechanisms theball motion may be compounded by the ball not initially actuating theshock actuation control mechanism due to for example the ball moving,but rebounding or retreating from an initially urged position to bemoved to a second position by the forces. These non-actuating motions ofthe ball delay valve closure which may increase the possibility ofdamage as for examples during an earthquake.

It is desirable to provide a vertical shock responsive fluid valveassembly with the capability of automatically closing a fluid valve inresponse to earthquake forces or other shock forces of a predeterminedmagnitude.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

One object of the invention is to improve reliability of the closure ofa fluid valve when specified shock and vibration forces are sensed by asensor mechanism element of the fluid valve. Another object is toimprove the repeatability of the actuation of the fluid valve automaticclosure.

Alternatively, the present invention is a vertical shock responsivefluid valve assembly capable of automatically closing a fluid valve inresponse to earthquake forces or other shock forces of predeterminedmagnitude.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a vertical shockresponsive valve assembly which is adapted to automatically close offthe flow of a controlled fluid in response to earthquake forces or othershock forces of a predetermined magnitude.

It is an additional object of the present invention to provide avertical shock responsive valve assembly which includes a flow controlmechanism having a cradle that holds a movable ball in a recess at apoint perpendicular in relation to a horizontal base plate, where theball can be rotated 360° in any direction during seismic actions orother shock forces and rolls out of its recess at a predetermined forcesuch that it ricochets off a housing cover covering the cradle andpushes a pipe that is mounted on a pivoting parallelogram levermechanism, thereby releasing a swing arm which has a disc on the endthat functions as a plug for the hole in the valve body to interrupt gasor fluid flow therein.

It is also an additional object of the present invention to provide avertical shock responsive valve assembly which includes a flow controlmechanism having a cradle that holds a movable ball in a recess at apoint perpendicular in relation to a horizontal base plate, where theball can be rotated 360° in any direction during seismic actions orother shock forces and rolls out of its recess at a predetermined forcesuch that it ricochets off a housing cover covering the cradle andpushes a trip fork that is mounted on a pivoting parallelogram levermechanism, thereby releasing a swing arm which has a disc on the endthat functions as a plug for the hole in the valve body to interrupt gasor fluid flow therein.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide a verticalshock responsive fluid valve assembly that actuates a controlled valveentirely mechanically, to avoid the necessity for provision of anauxiliary pneumatic, electrical or other power source, and therebyprevent problems which might be caused by failure of such a powersource.

Further novel features and other objects of the present invention willbecome apparent from the following detailed description, discussion andthe appended claims, taken in conjunction with the drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Referring particularly to the drawings for the purpose of illustrationonly and not limitation, there is illustrated:

FIG. 1 illustrates a fragmental vertical sectional elevation view of anopen shock action valve as disclosed in prior art.

FIG. 2 illustrates a fragmented generally vertical sectional view of theshock actuation control mechanism taken along line 2—2 of FIG. 1 andincludes the ball in its rest position on the pedestal as disclosed inprior art.

FIG. 3 illustrates a fragmented generally vertical sectional view of theshock actuation control mechanism with improved pedestal.

FIG. 4 illustrates a fragmented generally vertical sectional view of theshock actuation control mechanism with the ball displaced from its stateof rest to engage the vertical tube.

FIG. 5 illustrates a top plan view of the shock actuation controlmechanism.

FIG. 6 is a perspective view of alternatively the present invention of avertical shock responsive valve assembly.

FIG. 7 is a perspective of the present invention vertical shockresponsive valve assembly without the housing cover attached thereto.

FIG. 8 is an enlarged fragmentary view of the present invention verticalshock responsive valve assembly, showing the flow control mechanism inits open condition.

FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional view of the present invention vertical shockresponsive valve assembly, showing the flow control mechanism in dashedlines in its closed condition.

FIG. 10 is an exploded perspective view of the shock actuated responsivemechanism in accordance with the present invention.

FIG. 11 is an enlarged fragmentary view of an alternative embodiment ofthe present invention vertical shock responsive valve assembly, showingthe flow control mechanism in its open condition.

FIG. 12 is a cross-sectional view of the present invention verticalshock responsive valve assembly shown in FIG. 11, showing the flowcontrol mechanism in dashed lines its closed condition.

FIG. 13 is a perspective view of another alternative embodiment of thepresent invention of a vertical shock responsive valve assembly, wherefluid flows downwardly.

FIG. 14 is a perspective of the alternative embodiment of the presentinvention vertical shock responsive valve assembly illustrated in FIG.13, without the housing cover attached.

FIG. 15 is an enlarged fragmentary view of the alternative embodiment ofthe present invention vertical shock responsive valve assemblyillustrated in FIG. 14, showing the flow control mechanism in its opencondition.

FIG. 16 is a cross-sectional view of the alternative embodiment of thepresent invention vertical shock responsive valve assembly illustratedin FIG. 15, showing the flow control mechanism in dashed lines in itsclosed condition.

FIG. 17 is an exploded perspective view of the shock actuated responsivemechanism in accordance with the alternative embodiment of the presentinvention illustrated in FIG. 16.

FIG. 18 is perspective view of a variation of the alternative embodimentof the present invention vertical shock responsive valve assembly,showing the flow control mechanism in its open condition where fluidflows upwardly.

FIG. 19 is a cross-sectional view of the variation of the alternativeembodiment of the present invention vertical shock responsive valveassembly shown in FIG. 18, showing the flow control mechanism in dashedlines its closed condition.

FIG. 20 is an exploded perspective view of the shock actuated responsivemechanism in accordance with the alternative embodiment of the presentinvention illustrated in FIG. 19.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

Although specific embodiments of the present invention will now bedescribed with reference to the drawings, it should be understood thatsuch embodiments are by way of example only and merely illustrative ofbut a small number of the many possible specific embodiments which canrepresent applications of the principles of the present invention.Various changes and modifications obvious to one skilled in the art towhich the present invention pertains are deemed to be within the spirit,scope and contemplation of the present invention as further defined inthe appended claims.

Referring to FIG. 1, an automatic shock actuated valve of the prior artis illustrated. This valve is that disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,915,122issued Apr. 10, 1990 and which valve description is incorporated hereinby reference for disclosure of the preferred embodiment of the instantinvention. The prior art reference includes as co-inventors the twoinventors of this instant disclosure. While this prior art reference isincluded to present a preferred embodiment of the improvement mechanism,it is understood the structure and principles can be used with otherball weight actuating valves.

There is illustrated a shock and vibration force responsive valveassembly (10) which is adapted to automatically close off the control ofa fluid through a conduit. The assembly includes a tubular main body(11) having flanges (12) and (13) at its opposite ends connectable byfasteners (14) to abutting flanges (15) of adjacent conduit or pipesections to connect the body into a pipeline. The illustrationorientation is such that fluid, for example, natural gas, flows in aleft to right direction as viewed in FIG. 1 in an inner passage (16),partially illustrated, in body (11) and parallel to a central horizontalaxis of the passage.

The flow control mechanism includes a circular valve element (18) whichis engageable with an annular seat (19) formed in body (11) to close offthe flow of fluid through the assembly (10) valve element (18) iscarried by arm (20) which swings about a horizontal axis (21) between aclosed position and the open position illustrated in FIG. 1. Arm (20)and the carried valve disc (18) are releasably retained in the openposition by engagement of arm (20) with latch pin (22) carried by asecond arm (23) which is mounted for swinging movement about ahorizontal axis (24) between the position illustrated in FIG. 1 and thedashed line position illustrated therein. Arm (23) is in turn releasablyretained in position by a shock actuation control mechanism (25). Thecontrol mechanism (25) is principally contained in housing (58) havingbulge (59). The housing (58) is attached to the tubular main body (11)at annular flanges (62) which have a sealing O-Ring (63). The housing(58) is retained by circular clamp (60) and fasteners (61).

The control mechanism (25) includes a weight or mass (36) illustrated asa ball. When disc valve (18) is in the open position the ball (36) issupported on a pedestal (37) extending upwardly along vertical axis(38). The pedestal as illustrated is an externally cylindrical formabout axis (38) and has an upwardly facing shallow circular recess (39)to retain the ball (36) in its centered, at rest position. The pedestal(37) is attached to the body (11) by plate (40) and fasteners (41).

Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, a vertical tube (42) centered about axis(38) is disposed about and spaced from pedestal (37), and is movableupwardly and downwardly relative to the pedestal (37). The tube (42) ismounted for vertical movement by a parallelogram mechanism (43),including two similar parallel upper links (44) each pivoted at one endto the tube (42) by a horizontal pin (45) extending through verticalslot (46) in pedestal (37), and each pivoted by a second parallelhorizontal pin (47) to a pair of vertical bracket arms (48) projectingupwardly from and attached to plate (40). The parallelogram mechanismalso includes two similar parallel lower links (49) each pivoted by afirst pin (50) to tube (42) and by a second pin (51) to bracket arms(48). A downward movement of the tube (42) causes a rightward swingingmovement of cross pin (54) to release arm (20) for closure of the valve(10) by seating valve element (18) by a spring force.

The tube (42) is yieldingly urged upwardly, as for example by a leafspring or plate spring (57). When ball (36) is moved laterally from itscentered position in any horizontal direction relative to pedestal (37)the weight engages the upper edge of tube (42) and displaces the tube(42) downwardly relative to the pedestal to move cross pin (54) carriedon projection (53) out of notch (55) in arm (23) and allows downwardswinging movement of arm (23) to cause the valve to close. The amount ofshock or vibration force to displace ball (36) from recess (39) isdetermined by the shape and depth of the recess (39) and the mass of theball (36). In some instances the ball (36) may be displaced by a forcewhich causes ball (36) partial engagement with vertical tube (42), butdue to force frequency or other factors the ball (36) does notdownwardly displace the vertical tube (42) sufficiently and the ball(36) retreats to a second position. This motion delays the actuation ofthe valve (10) and thereby the ceasing of flow of the fluid.

Referring to FIGS. 3 through 5, an improved pedestal (37) embodiment isillustrated. The pedestal (37) upper end has been modified to create aridge (1) or circular protrusion with generally cylindrical recess (2)therein and a step or offset (3) circumferentially formed external tothe ridge (1). While a cylindrical recess is discussed in the embodimentother recess shapes, such as that disclosed in the prior art, may beused with the circumferential external offset (3). The ball (36) issupported on pedestal (37) and retained in its central, at rest positionby ridge (1).

When a shock or vibration force is experienced by the shock actuationcontrol mechanism (25), the ball (36) is displaced when such forcereaches a specified value. If the force is of sufficient strength andduration, the ball (36) is urged upwardly and over the ridge (1). Oncethe center of gravity of the ball (36) passes the vertical centerposition of the ridge (1), gravitational force will act on the ball (36)to move it downwardly toward offset (3). This vertical gravitationalforce combines with the horizontal force displacing the ball (36) toforce the vertical tube (42) in a downwardly direction actuating closureof the valve (18).

The offset (3) must be sized to aid the ball (36) engagement withvertical tube (42), but not be so large as to inhibit the return of theball (36) to its central position when the valve assembly (10) is resetafter the shock and vibration forces have ceased. The vertical tube (42)top end may also be beveled (4) for more controlled uniform forceapplication by the ball (36). The diameter of the ridge (1) and the sizeof the offset (3) are adjusted to cause the valve to close upon sensingthe specified motion forces. In this embodiment the value at which theball (36) will be caused to engage the vertical tube (42) may beadjusted by changing the inside diameter of the ridge (1). It has beenfound by experiment that for minor adjustment the ball (36) may beimpacted by a force, as from example a hammer, causing a spreadingimpact force to the ridge (1).

Use of the improved pedestal structure has been found by experiment toimprove the accuracy of the time for mechanism response to specifiedshock and vibration forces to be repeatable to within 0.001 of a second.

Referring to FIGS. 6 through 9, alternatively, there is shown at 110 thepresent invention shock and vibration force responsive valve assemblywhich is adapted to automatically close off the flow of a controlledfluid such as natural gas through a conduit in response to seismicforces or other shock forces of a predetermined magnitude. The valveassembly 110 includes a tubular main valve body 111 having flanges 112and 113 at its opposite ends connectable by fasteners to abuttingflanges of adjacent conduit sections or pipe sections (not shown) toconnect the main body 111 into a pipeline. It may be assumed thatnatural gas or another controlled fluid flows in a downward direction(top to bottom) as shown by the flow arrow 109 through an inner passage116 formed in the main body 111 and parallel to a central vertical axis117 of the inner passage 116.

The valve assembly 110 further includes a flow control mechanism whichhas a circular disc valve 118 engageable with an annular seat 119 formedin the main valve body 111 to close off the flow of fluid through thevalve assembly 110 (see FIG. 9). The disc valve 118 is carried by aswing arm 120 which swings about a horizontal axis 121 between theclosed condition (see FIG. 9) and the open condition (see FIG. 8). Thearm 120 and the carried disc valve 118 are releasably retained in theopen condition of the valve by engagement of the arm 120 with a latchpin 154 carried by a projection trip arm 123. The trip arm 123 is inturn releasably retained in its position by a shock responsive mechanism125 which is contained within a dome shaped housing cover 158 having abulge 159. The housing cover 158 is attached to the tubular main body111 at annular flanges 162 which have a sealing O-Ring 163 or othergasket. The housing cover 158 is retained by a circular clamp 160typically formed of two semi-circular sections secured together at theiropposite ends by fasteners such as screws, rivets, or other suitablefasteners.

Referring to FIGS. 8, 9 and 10, the shock actuated responsive mechanism125 includes a weight or mass 136, such as a metal ball. When the discvalve 118 is in the open position, the ball 136 is supported on a cradle137 which extends outwardly and away from the main body 111. The cradle137 has a flat horizontal base plate 170 and two opposite arms 172 thatextend away from the base plate 170 and attached to a vertical plate 140which is then attached to the main body 111 by fasteners. The base plate170 has a circular recess 139 therethrough which has contour to normallyretain the ball 136 in its centered position. The ball 136 isdisplaceable from the centered position relative to the cradle 137, asto the position represented in broken lines in FIG. 9, by shock inducedmovement of the cradle 137 relative to the ball 136, during whichmovement the inertia of the weight resists movement thereof with thecradle 137.

A horizontal cylindrical tube or pipe 142 is disposed between the twoopposite arms 172 of the cradle 137 and located adjacent to the baseplate 170 and is movable in a horizontal direction relative to thecradle 137. The horizontal cylindrical tube 142 is mounted forhorizontal movement by a parallelogram mechanism 143, including aprojection trip arm 123, a first pair of parallel links 128 extendingdownwardly from the trip arm 123 and a second pair of parallel links 130extending downwardly from the trip arm 123, each pair of links pivotedat one end of the horizontal tube 142 by a horizontal pin 145 extendingthrough a horizontal slot 146 in the horizontal cylindrical tube 142 andsecured by a pair of fasteners 126, each pair of links pivoted by asecond parallel horizontal arm 147 to a pair of horizontal bracket arms148 projecting outwardly from and attached to the vertical plate 140 andsecured by a second pair of fasteners 132. The projection trip arm 123is located above the ball 136. A horizontal movement of the horizontalcylindrical tube 142 causes a cross pin 154 to release the swing arm 120for closure of the valve assembly 110 by seating the disc valve 118 by aspring force.

The horizontal cylindrical tube 142 is yieldingly urged outwardly by aleaf spring or plate spring 157 which is mounted to the vertical plate140. When the ball 136 is moved laterally from its centered position inany horizontal direction relative to the cradle 137, the weight engagesthe outer end of the horizontal cylindrical tube 142 and displaces thehorizontal tube 142 horizontally relative to the cradle 137 to move thecross pin 154 carried on the projection trip arm 123 and allowshorizontal swinging movement of the projection trip arm 123 to cause thedisc valve 118 to close. The amount of shock or vibration force todisplace the ball 136 from the circular recess 139 is determined by theshape of the recess 139 and the mass of the ball 136. The outer end ofthe horizontal cylindrical tube 142 may also be beveled 164 for morecontrolled uniform force application by the ball 136.

The ball 136 and its associated parts are enclosed within the domeshaped housing cover 158 which is attached to and projects outwardlyfrom the main valve body 111. Thus, the housing cover 158 effectivelycloses an opening 124 at the side of the main body 111. When a shock orvibration force is experienced by the shock actuated responsivemechanism 125, the ball 136 is displaced when such force reaches aspecified value. If the force is of sufficient strength and duration,the ball 136 is urged upwardly and out of the circular recess 139. Theball 136 rattles around within the housing cover 158 and there is no wayto know which direction the ball 136 will rattle since it is in ahorizontal configuration. The ball 136 might rattle directly against theouter end of the horizontal tube 142 to trip the valve assembly 110.Alternatively, it can rattle sideways against the housing cover 158 orup, front or back against the housing cover and ricochet off the housingcover to then strike the horizontal cylindrical tube 142 to trip thevalve assembly. The ball 136 can rotate 360° in any direction, andthereby hits the housing cover 158 and then ricochets off the housingcover 158 and strikes the horizontal cylindrical tube 142 to activatethe valve assembly to cover the disc valve 118. The ball 136 thusautomatically resets itself in the centered position when permitted todo so.

Referring to FIG. 10, there are shown the positions of the projectiontrip arm 123 and the vertical plate 140 for a vertical shock andvibration force responsive valve assembly for fluid flow from bottom totop (see FIGS. 11 and 12). It will be appreciated that the positions ofthe projection trip arm and the vertical plate can be rotated 180° forfluid from top to bottom (see FIGS. 8 and 9).

Referring to FIGS. 11 and 12, there is shown at 210 an alternativeembodiment of the present invention shock and vibration force responsivevalve assembly which is adapted to automatically close off the flow of acontrolled fluid such as natural gas through a conduit in response toseismic forces or other shock forces of a predetermined magnitude. Thisembodiment of the present invention is very similar to the embodimentjust discussed above and the only difference is the nature andconfiguration of the projection trip arm 223 which is located underneaththe ball 236 and the vertical plate 240 of the shock actuated responsivemechanism 225. All of the parts of this embodiment are correspondinglynumbered in a 200 series reference number rather than a 100 seriesreference number used in the embodiment just discussed abovearrangement.

The valve assembly 210 includes a tubular main valve body 211 havingflanges 212 and 213 at its opposite ends connectable by fasteners toabutting flanges of adjacent conduit sections or pipe sections (notshown) to connect the main body 211 into a pipeline. It may be assumedthat natural gas or another controlled fluid flows in an upwarddirection (bottom to top) as shown by the flow arrow 209 through aninner passage 216 formed in the main body 211 and parallel to a centralvertical axis 217 of the inner passage 216.

The valve assembly 210 further includes a flow control mechanism whichhas a circular disc valve 218 engageable with an annular seat 219 formedin the main valve body 211 to close off the flow of fluid through thevalve assembly 210 (see FIG. 12). The disc valve 218 is carried by aswing arm 220 which swings about a horizontal axis 221 between theclosed condition (see FIG. 12) and the open condition (see FIG. 11). Thearm 220 and the carried disc valve 218 are releasably retained in theopen condition of the valve by engagement of the arm 220 with a latchpin 254 carried by a projection trip arm 223. The trip arm 223 is inturn releasably retained in its position by a shock responsive mechanism225 which is contained within a dome shaped housing cover 258 having abulge 259. The housing cover 258 is attached to the tubular main body211 at annular flanges 262 which have a sealing O-Ring 263 or othergasket. The housing cover 258 is retained by a circular clamp 260typically formed of two semi-circular sections secured together at theiropposite ends by fasteners such as screws, rivets, or other suitablefasteners.

The shock actuated responsive mechanism 225 includes a weight or mass236, such as a metal ball. When the disc valve 218 is in the openposition, the ball 236 is supported on a cradle 237 which extendsoutwardly and away from the main body 211. The cradle 237 has a flathorizontal base plate 270 and two opposite arms that extend away fromthe base plate 270 and attached to a vertical plate 240 which is thenattached to the main body 211 by fasteners. The base plate 270 has acircular recess 239 therethrough which has contour to normally retainthe ball 236 in its centered position. The ball 236 is displaceable fromthe centered position relative to the cradle 237, as to the positionrepresented in broken lines in FIG. 12, by shock induced movement of thecradle 237 relative to the ball 236, during which movement the inertiaof the weight resists movement thereof with the cradle 237.

A horizontal cylindrical tube or pipe 242 is disposed between the twoopposite arms 272 of the cradle 237 and located adjacent to the baseplate 270 and is movable in a horizontal direction relative to thecradle 237. The horizontal cylindrical tube 242 is mounted forhorizontal movement by a parallelogram mechanism 243, including aprojection trip arm 223, a first pair of parallel links extendingupwardly from the trip arm 223 and a second pair of parallel linksextending upwardly from the trip arm 223, each pair of links pivoted atone end of the horizontal tube 242 by a horizontal pin extending througha horizontal slot in the horizontal cylindrical tube and secured by apair of fasteners, each pair of links pivoted by a second parallelhorizontal arm to a pair of horizontal bracket arms 248 projectingoutwardly from and attached to the vertical plate 240 and secured by asecond pair of fasteners. A horizontal movement of the horizontalcylindrical tube 242 causes a cross pin 254 to release the swing arm 220for closure of the valve assembly 210 by seating the disc valve 218 by aspring force.

The horizontal cylindrical tube 242 is yieldingly urged outwardly by aleaf spring or plate spring which is mounted to the vertical plate 240.When the ball 236 is moved laterally from its centered position in anyhorizontal direction relative to the cradle 237, the weight engages theouter end of the horizontal cylindrical tube 242 and displaces thehorizontal tube 242 horizontally relative to the cradle 237 to move thecross pin 254 carried on the projection trip arm 223 and allowshorizontal swinging movement of the projection trip arm 223 to cause thedisc valve 218 to close. The amount of shock or vibration force todisplace the ball 236 from the circular recess 239 is determined by theshape of the recess 239 and the mass of the ball 236. The outer end ofthe horizontal cylindrical tube 242 may also be beveled 264 for morecontrolled uniform force application by the ball 236.

The ball 236 and its associated parts are enclosed within the domeshaped housing cover 258 which is attached to and projects outwardlyfrom the main valve body 211. Thus, the housing cover 258 effectivelycloses an opening 224 at the side of the main body 2111. When a shock orvibration force is experienced by the shock actuated responsivemechanism 225, the ball 236 is displaced when such force reaches aspecified value. If the force is of sufficient strength and duration,the ball 236 is urged upwardly and out of the circular recess 239. Theball 236 rattles around within the housing cover 258 and there is no wayto know which direction the ball 236 will rattle since it is in ahorizontal configuration. The ball 236 might rattle directly against theouter end of the horizontal tube 242 to trip the valve assembly 210.Alternatively, it can rattle sideways against the housing cover 258 orup, front or back against the housing cover and ricochet off the housingcover to then strike the horizontal cylindrical tube 242 to trip thevalve assembly. The ball 236 can rotate 360° in any direction, andthereby hits the housing cover 258 and then ricochets off the housingcover 258 and strikes the horizontal cylindrical tube 242 to activatethe valve assembly to cover the disc valve 218. The ball 236 thusautomatically resets itself in the centered position when permitted todo so. By way of example, only the weight or ball 136 and 236 can bemade of steel.

Referring to FIGS. 13 through 16, there is shown at 310 anotheralternative embodiment of the present invention shock and vibrationforce responsive valve assembly which is adapted to automatically closeoff the flow of a controlled fluid such as natural gas through a conduitin response to seismic forces or other shock forces of a predeterminedmagnitude. The valve assembly 310 includes a tubular main valve body 311having flanges 312 and 313 at its opposite ends connectable by fastenersto abutting flanges of adjacent conduit sections or pipe sections (notshown) to connect the main body 311 into a pipeline. It may be assumedthat natural gas or another controlled fluid flows in a downwarddirection (top to bottom) as shown by the flow arrow 309 through aninner passage 316 formed in the main body 311 and parallel to a centralvertical axis 317 of the inner passage 316.

The valve assembly 310 further includes a flow control mechanism whichhas a circular disc valve 318 engageable with an annular seat 319 formedin the main valve body 311 to close off the flow of fluid through thevalve assembly 310 (see FIG. 9). The disc valve 318 is carried by aswing arm 320 which swings about a horizontal axis 321 between theclosed condition (see FIG. 16) and the open condition (see FIG. 15). Thearm 320 and the carried disc valve 318 are releasably retained in theopen condition of the valve by engagement of the arm 320 with a latchpin 354 carried by a projection trip arm 323. The trip arm 323 is inturn releasably retained in its position by a shock responsive mechanism325 which is contained within a dome shaped housing cover 358 having abulge 359. The housing cover 358 is attached to the tubular main body311 at annular flanges 362 which have a sealing O-Ring 363 or othergasket. The housing cover 358 is retained by a circular clamp 360typically formed of two semi-circular sections secured together at theiropposite ends by fasteners such as screws, rivets, or other suitablefasteners.

Referring to FIGS. 15, 16 and 17, the shock actuated responsivemechanism 325 includes a weight or mass 336, such as a metal ball. Whenthe disc valve 318 is in the open position, the ball 336 is supported ona cradle 337 which extends outwardly and away from the main body 311.The cradle 337 has a flat horizontal base plate 370 and two oppositearms 372 that extend away from the base plate 370 and attached to avertical plate 340 which is then attached to the main body 311 byfasteners. The base plate 370 has a circular recess 339 therethroughwhich has contour to normally retain the ball 336 in its centeredposition. The ball 336 is displaceable from the centered positionrelative to the cradle 337, as to the position represented in brokenlines in FIG. 16, by shock induced movement of the cradle 337 relativeto the ball 336, during which movement the inertia of the weight resistsmovement thereof with the cradle 337.

A trip fork mechanism 342 is disposed between the two opposite arms 372of the cradle 337 and located adjacent to the base plate 370 and ismovable in a horizontal direction relative to the cradle 337. The tripfork 342 comprises a semi-circular base member 341 which is contoured atan angle “A” relative to the horizontal. The angle “A” is preferably 45degrees although any angle from 15 degrees to 75 degrees will functionwith the alternative embodiment of the present invention. The trip fork342 further comprises a pair of spaced apart parallel vertical walls 351and 353 having openings 346 therethrough. The trip fork mechanism 342 ismounted for horizontal movement by a movable mechanism which by way ofexample is a parallelogram mechanism 343, including a projection triparm 323, a first pair of parallel links 328 extending downward from thetrip arm 323 and a second pair of parallel links 330 extendingdownwardly from the trip arm 323, each pair of links pivoted on thevertical walls 351 and 353 of the trip fork mechanism 342 by ahorizontal pin 345 extending through the horizontal openings 346 in thevertical walls 351 and 353 of the trip fork mechanism 342 and secured bya pair of fasteners 326, each pair of links pivoted by a second parallelhorizontal arm 347 to a pair of horizontal bracket arms 348 projectingoutwardly from and attached to the vertical plate 340 and secured by asecond pair of fasteners 332. The projection trip arm 323 is locatedabove the ball 336. A horizontal movement of the trip fork mechanism 342causes a cross pin 354 to release the swing arm 320 for closure of thevalve assembly 310 by seating the disc valve 318 by a spring force.

The trip fork mechanism 342 is yieldingly urged outwardly by a leafspring or plate spring 357 which is mounted to the vertical plate 340 byrivets 359. When the ball 336 is moved laterally from its centeredposition in any horizontal direction relative to the cradle 337, theweight engages the base member 341 of the trip fork mechanism 342 andthe contoured surfaced of the base member 341 enables both the weightand acceleration of the ball 336 to act on the trip fork mechanism 342to cause the trip fork mechanism to be displaced in a horizontaldirection and thereby move the cross pin 354 carried on the projectiontrip arm 323 and allows horizontal swinging movement of the projectiontrip arm 323 to cause the disk valve 318 to close. The amount of shockor vibration force to displace the ball 336 from the circular recess 339is determined by the shape of the recess 339 and the mass of the ball336. As illustrated in FIG. 16, there is a gap between the horizontalbase 341 of trip fork mechanism 342 and the ball 336 and thesemi-circular shape of the contoured horizontal base 341 furtherfacilitates action of the ball 336 to hit the trip fork mechanism 342.The contoured angle “A” preferably at 45 degrees further facilitatesactivation of the trip fork mechanism 342 by both the acceleration andweight of the ball 336 coming in contact with the contoured surface setat an angle “A” of base mechanism 341.

The ball 336 and its associated parts are enclosed within the domeshaped housing cover 358 which is attached to and projects outwardlyfrom the main valve body 311. Thus, the housing cover 358 effectivelycloses an opening 324 at the side of the main body 311. When a shock orvibration force is experienced by the shock actuated responsivemechanism 325, the ball 336 is displaced when such force reaches aspecified value. If the force is of sufficient strength and duration,the ball 336 is urged upwardly and out of the circular recess 339. Theball 336 rattles around within the housing cover 358 and there is no wayto know which direction the ball 336 will rattle since it is in ahorizontal configuration. The ball 336 might rattle directly against thebase member 341 of the trip fork mechanism 342 to trip the valveassembly 310. Alternatively, it can rattle sideways against the housingcover 358 or up, front or back against the housing cover and ricochetoff the housing cover to then strike the base member 341 of trip forkmechanism 342 to trip the valve assembly. The ball 336 can rotate 360°in any direction, and thereby hits the housing cover 358 and thenricochets off the housing cover 358 and strikes the trip fork mechanism342 to activate the valve assembly to cover the disc valve 318. The ball336 thus automatically resets itself in the centered position whenpermitted to do so.

Referring to FIGS. 18, 19 and 20, there is shown at 410 an alternativeembodiment of the present invention shock and vibration force responsivevalve assembly which is adapted to automatically close off the flow of acontrolled fluid such as natural gas through a conduit in response toseismic forces or other shock forces of a predetermined magnitude. Thisembodiment of the present invention is very similar to the embodimentjust discussed above and the only difference is the nature andconfiguration of the projection trip arm 423 which is located underneaththe ball 436 and the vertical plate 440 of the shock actuated responsivemechanism 425. All of the parts of this embodiment are correspondinglynumbered in a 400 series reference number rather than a 300 seriesreference number used in the embodiment just discussed above.

The valve assembly 410 includes a tubular main valve body 411 havingflanges 412 and 413 at its opposite ends connectable by fasteners toabutting flanges of adjacent conduit sections or pipe sections (notshown) to connect the main body 411 into a pipeline. It may be assumedthat natural gas or another controlled fluid flows in an upwarddirection (bottom to top) as shown by the flow arrow 409 through aninner passage 416 formed in the main body 411 and parallel to a centralvertical axis 417 of the inner passage 416.

The valve assembly 410 further includes a flow control mechanism whichhas a circular disc valve 418 engageable with an annular seat 419 formedin the main valve body 411 to close off the flow of fluid through thevalve assembly 410 (see FIG. 19). The disc valve 418 is carried by aswing arm 420 which swings about a horizontal axis 421 between theclosed condition (see FIG. 19) and the open condition (see FIG. 18). Thearm 420 and the carried disc valve 418 are releasably retained in theopen condition of the valve by engagement of the arm 420 with a latchpin 454 carried by a projection trip arm 423. The trip arm 423 is inturn releasably retained in its position by a shock responsive mechanism425 which is contained within a dome shaped housing cover 458 having abulge. The housing cover 458 is attached to the tubular main body 411 atannular flanges 462 which have a sealing O-Ring 463 or other gasket. Thehousing cover 458 is retained by a circular clamp typically formed oftwo semi-circular sections secured, together at their opposite ends byfasteners such as screws, rivets, or other suitable fasteners.

The shock actuated responsive mechanism 425 includes a weight or mass436, such as a metal ball. When the disc valve 418 is in the openposition, the ball 436 is supported on a cradle 437 which extendsoutwardly and away from the main body 411. The cradle 437 has a flathorizontal base plate 470 and two opposite arms that extend away fromthe base plate 470 and attach to a vertical plate 440 which is thenattached to the main body 411 by fasteners. The base plate 470 has acircular recess 439 therethrough which has contour to normally retainthe ball 436 in its centered position. The ball 436 is displaceable fromthe centered position relative to the cradle 437, as to the positionrepresented in broken lines in FIG. 19, by shock induced movement of thecradle 437 relative to the ball 436, during which movement the inertiaof the weight resists movement thereof with the cradle 437.

A trip fork mechanism 442 is disposed between the two opposite arms 472of the cradle 437 and located adjacent to the base plate 470 and ismovable in a horizontal direction relative to the cradle 437. The tripfork mechanism 442 comprises a semi-circular base member 441 which iscontoured at an angle “A¹” relative to the horizontal. The angle “A¹” ispreferably 45 degrees although any angle from 15 degrees to 75 degreeswill function with the alternative embodiment of the present invention.The trip fork mechanism 442 further comprises a pair of spaced apartparallel vertical walls 451 and 453 having openings 446 therethrough.

Referring to FIG. 20, the trip fork mechanism 442 is mounted forhorizontal movement by a movable mechanism which by way of example is aparallelogram mechanism 443 including a projection trip arm 423, a firstpair of parallel links 426 and 428 extending upwardly from the trip arm423 and a second pair of parallel links 430 extending upwardly from thetrip arm 423, each pair of links respectively pivoted at one endvertical walls 451 and 453 by a horizontal pins 445 extending throughthe horizontal openings 446 and secured by a pair of fasteners 426, eachpair of links pivoted by a second pair of pins 447 to a pair ofhorizontal bracket arms 448 projecting outwardly from and attached tothe vertical plate 440 and secured by a second pair of fasteners 432. Ahorizontal movement of the trip fork mechanism 442 causes a cross pin454 to release the swing arm 420 for closure of the valve assembly 410by seating the disc valve 418 by a spring force.

The trip fork mechanism 446 is yieldingly urged outwardly by a leafspring or plate spring 457 which is mounted by rivets to the verticalplate 440. When the ball 436 is moved laterally from its centeredposition in any horizontal direction relative to the cradle 437, theweight engages the semi-circular base member 441 of trip fork mechanism442 and the angle “A¹” further enables the inertia as well as the weightof the ball to act upon the ball 436 to act upon the trip fork mechanism446 and causes the trip fork mechanism 442 to move horizontally relativeto the cradle 437 and move the cross pin 454 carried on the projectiontrip arm 423 and allows horizontal swinging movement of the projectiontrip arm 423 to cause the disc valve 418 to close. The amount of shockor vibration force to displace the ball 436 from the circular recess 439is determined by the shape of the recess 439 and the mass of the ball436.

The ball 436 and its associated parts are enclosed within the domeshaped housing cover 458 which is attached to and projects outwardlyfrom the main valve body 411. Thus, the housing cover 458 effectivelycloses an opening 424 at the side of the main body 411. When a shock orvibration force is experienced by the shock actuated responsivemechanism 425, the ball 436 is displaced when such force reaches aspecified value. If the force is of sufficient strength and duration,the ball 436 is urged upwardly and out of the circular recess 439. Theball 436 rattles around within the housing cover 458 and there is no wayto know which direction the ball 436 will rattle since it is in ahorizontal configuration. The ball 436 might rattle directly against theball member 441 of trip fork mechanism 442 to trip the valve assembly410. Alternatively, it can rattle sideways against the housing cover 458or up, front or back against the housing cover and ricochet off thehousing cover to then strike the trip fork mechanism 442 to trip thevalve assembly. The ball 436 can rotate 360° in any direction, andthereby hits the housing cover 458 and then ricochets off the housingcover 458 and strikes the trip fork mechanism 442 to activate the valveassembly to cover the disc valve 418. The ball 436 thus automaticallyresets itself in the centered position when permitted to do so. By wayof example, only the weight or ball 436 can be made of steel.

Defined in detail, the present invention is a vertical shock actuatedvalve assembly adapted to automatically close off the flow of acontrolled fluid through a conduit in response to a shock or vibrationforce of a predetermined magnitude and having a shock actuatedresponsive mechanism comprising: (a) a cradle having a horizontal baseplate and a pair of arms extending away from the horizontal base plateand opposing each other and attached to a vertical plate which in turnis attachable to a main body of said valve assembly, the horizontal baseplate having a central circular bore therethrough in which a weight inthe form of a ball is supported and retained thereon; (b) aparallelogram mechanism including a projection trip arm, a first pair ofparallel links extending from said trip arm and a second pair ofparallel arms extending from said trip arm, the parallelogram mechanismmovably attached to the valve assembly by pin means extending throughsaid first and second parallel links; (c) a trip fork mechanism having acontoured semi-circular base member and a pair of spaced apart verticalwalls by which the trip fork mechanism is secured between said first andsecond pairs of parallel links of said parallelogram mechanism by pinmeans, the trip fork mechanism located adjacent to said horizontal baseplate such that the contoured semi-circular base member faces said ball;and (d) a housing cover enclosing said ball, said cradle, saidparallelogram mechanism, and said trip fork mechanism so that when saidball is moved out of said central circular bore and retained on saidhorizontal base plate by the housing cover and rattles around andricochets off the interior of the housing cover, the ball therebystrikes said contoured semi-circular base member of said trip forkmechanism to cause a cross pin to release a swing arm to cause a valvemember to move against a valve seat and thereby activate said valveassembly to stop the flow of the fluid therethrough.

Defined broadly, the present invention is a vertical shock actuatedvalve assembly having valve closing means and adapted to automaticallyclose off the flow of a fluid through a conduit in response to a shockor vibration force of a predetermined magnitude and having a shockactuated responsive mechanism comprising: (a) a cradle having ahorizontal plate and at least two arms extending away from thehorizontal plate and attached to a vertical plate which in turn isattachable to a main body of said valve assembly, the horizontal platehaving a central bore therethrough in which a weight is supported andretained thereon; (b) a parallelogram mechanism including a projectiontrip arim having attachment means extending therefrom, the parallelogrammechanism movably attached to the valve assembly by said attachmentmeans; (c) a trip fork mechanism having a base member and a pair ofspaced apart vertical walls by which the trip fork mechanism is securedbetween said attachment means of said parallelogram mechanism, the tripfork mechanism located adjacent to said horizontal base plate such thatthe base member faces said weight; and (d) a cover enclosing saidweight, said cradle, said parallelogram mechanism, and said trip forkmechanism so that when said weight is moved out of said central bore andretained on said horizontal plate by the cover and rattles around andricochets off the interior of the cover, the ball thereby strikes saidbase member of said trip fork mechanism to activate valve closing meansof said valve assembly to stop the flow of the fluid therethrough.

Defined more broadly, the present invention is a vertical shock actuatedvalve assembly having a valve closing means and having a shock actuatedresponsive mechanism comprising: (a) a horizontal plate having a boretherethrough in which a weight is supported and retained centrally onthe horizontal plate, the horizontal plate attached to the valveassembly; (b) a movable mechanism movably attached to the valveassembly; (c) a trip fork mechanism having a base member and a pair ofspaced apart vertical walls by which the trip fork mechanism is movablyattached to said movable mechanism, the trip fork mechanism locatedadjacent to said horizontal base plate such that the base member facessaid weight; and (d) a cover enclosing said weight, said horizontalplate, said movable mechanism, and said trip fork mechanism so that whensaid weight is moved out of said central bore and retained on saidhorizontal plate by the cover and rattles around and ricochets off theinterior of the cover, the ball thereby strikes said base member of saidtrip fork mechanism to activate the valve closing means of said valveassembly to stop the flow of the fluid therethrough.

Defined even more broadly, the present invention is a shock actuatedvalve assembly having a shock actuated responsive mechanism comprising:(a) a horizontal plate having a bore therethrough in which a weight issupported and retained centrally on the horizontal plate, the horizontalplate attached to the valve assembly; (b) a movable mechanism movablyattached to the valve assembly; (c) a trip fork mechanism having a basemember and means to movably attach the trip fork mechanism to saidmovable mechanism, the trip fork mechanism located adjacent to thehorizontal base plate such that the base member faces said weight; and(d) a cover enclosing said weight, said horizontal plate, said movablemechanism, and said trip fork mechanism so that when said weight ismoved out of said central bore and retained on said horizontal plate bythe cover and rattles around and ricochets off the interior of thecover, the weight thereby strikes said base member of said trip forkmechanism to activate said valve assembly to stop the flow of the fluidtherethrough.

Further defined more broadly, the present invention is a vertical shockactuated valve assembly adapted to automatically close off the flow of acontrolled fluid through a conduit in response to a shock or vibrationforce of a predetermined magnitude and having a shock actuatedresponsive mechanism comprising: (a) horizontal plate having a boretherethrough in which a weight is supported and retained centrally onthe horizontal plate, the horizontal plate attached to the valveassembly; (b) a movable mechanism movably attached to the valveassembly; and (c) a trip fork mechanism having a base member and meansto movably attach the trip fork mechanism to said movable mechanism, thetrip fork mechanism located adjacent to the horizontal base plate suchthat the base member faces said weight; (d) whereby when the shock orvibration force is experienced by said shock actuated responsivemechanism, said ball is displaced when such force reaches thepredetermined magnitude causing said ball to roll out of said bore tostrike said trip fork mechanism to cause the trip fork mechanism to movein a horizontal direction to thereby actuate and close said valveassembly to stop the flow of the fluid therethrough.

Further defined even more broadly, the present invention is a shockactuated valve having a shock responsive mechanism comprising: (a) ahorizontal plate having a bore therethrough in which a weight issupported and retained centrally on the horizontal plate and means forattaching to a main body of said shock actuated valve; and (b) a tripfork mechanism having at least a portion located adjacent to saidweight; (c) whereby when the shock or vibration force is experienced bysaid shock responsive mechanism, said weight is displaced when suchforce reaches the predetermined magnitude causing said weight to moveout of said bore to strike said trip fork mechanism and cause it to movein a horizontal direction to thereby actuate and close said shockactuated valve to stop the flow of the fluid therethrough.

Of course the present invention is not intended to be restricted to anyparticular form or arrangement, or any specific embodiment, or anyspecific use, disclosed herein, since the same may be modified invarious particulars or relations without departing from the spirit orscope of the claimed invention hereinabove shown arid described of whichthe apparatus or method shown is intended only for illustration anddisclosure of an operative embodiment and not to show all of the variousforms or modifications in which this invention might be embodied oroperated.

The present invention has been described in considerable detail in orderto comply with the patent laws by providing full public disclosure of atleast one of its forms. However, such detailed description is notintended in any way to limit the broad features or principles of thepresent invention, or the scope of the patent to be granted. Therefore,the invention is to be limited only by the scope of the appended claims.

What is claimed is:
 1. A vertical shock actuated valve assembly adaptedto automatically close off the flow of a controlled fluid through aconduit in response to a shock or vibration force of a predeterminedmagnitude and having a shock actuated responsive mechanism comprising:a. a cradle having a horizontal base plate and a pair of arms extendingaway from the horizontal base plate and opposing each other and attachedto a vertical plate which in turn is attachable to a main body of saidvalve assembly, the horizontal base plate having a central circular boretherethrough in which a weight in the form of a ball is supported andretained thereon; b. a parallelogram mechanism including a projectiontrip arm, a first pair of parallel links extending from said trip armand a second pair of parallel arms extending from said trip arm, theparallelogram mechanism movably attached to the valve assembly by pinmeans extending through said first and second parallel links; c. a tripfork mechanism having a contoured semi-circular base member and a pairof spaced apart vertical walls by which the trip fork mechanism issecured between said first and second pairs of parallel links of saidparallelogram mechanism by pin means, the trip fork mechanism locatedadjacent to said horizontal base plate such that the contouredsemi-circular base member faces said ball; and d. a housing coverenclosing said ball, said cradle, said parallelogram mechanism, and saidtrip fork mechanism so that when said ball is moved out of said centralcircular bore and retained-on said horizontal base plate by the housingcover and rattles around and ricochets off the interior of the housingcover, the ball thereby strikes said contoured semi-circular base memberof said trip fork mechanism to cause a cross pin to release a swing armto cause a valve member to move against a valve seat and therebyactivate said valve assembly to stop the flow of the fluid therethrough.2. The shock actuated responsive mechanism in accordance with claim 1,wherein said ball is made of steel.
 3. The shock actuated responsivemechanism in accordance with claim 1, wherein said contour of saidsemi-circular base member is at a 45 degree angle to the horizontal. 4.A vertical shock actuated valve assembly having valve closing means andadapted to automatically close off the flow of a fluid through a conduitin response to a shock or vibration force of a predetermined magnitudeand having a shock actuated responsive mechanism comprising: a. a cradlehaving a horizontal plate and at least two arms extending away from thehorizontal plate and attached to a vertical plate which in turn isattachable to a main body of said valve assembly, the horizontal platehaving a central bore therethrough in which a weight is supported andretained thereon; b. a parallelogram mechanism including a projectiontrip arm having attachment means extending therefrom, the parallelogrammechanism movably attached to the valve assembly by said attachmentmeans; c. a trip fork mechanism having a base member and a pair ofspaced apart vertical walls by which the trip fork mechanism is securedbetween said attachment means of said parallelogram mechanism, the tripfork mechanism located adjacent to said horizontal base plate such thatthe base member faces said weight; and d. a cover enclosing said weight,said cradle, said parallelogram mechanism, and said trip fork mechanismso that when said weight is moved out of said central bore and retainedon said horizontal plate by the cover and rattles around and ricochetsoff the interior of the cover, the ball thereby strikes said base memberof said trip fork mechanism to activate valve closing means of saidvalve assembly to stop the flow of the fluid therethrough.
 5. The shockactuated responsive mechanism in accordance with claim 4, wherein saidweight is a ball.
 6. The shock actuated responsive mechanism inaccordance with claim 5, wherein said ball is made of steel.
 7. Theshock actuated responsive mechanism in accordance with claim 4, whereinsaid base member is configured to be semi-circular in shape and has acontoured surface which faces the weight.
 8. The shock actuatedresponsive mechanism in accordance with claim 7, wherein said contour ofsaid base member is at an angle of approximately 45 degrees to thehorizontal.
 9. A vertical shock actuated valve assembly having a valveclosing means and having a shock actuated responsive mechanismcomprising: a. a horizontal plate having a bore therethrough in which aweight is supported and retained centrally on the horizontal plate, thehorizontal plate attached to the valve assembly; b. a movable mechanismmovably attached to the valve assembly; c. a trip fork mechanism havinga base member and a pair of spaced apart vertical walls by which thetrip fork mechanism is movably attached to said movable mechanism, thetrip fork mechanism located adjacent to said horizontal base plate suchthat the base member faces said weight; and d. a cover enclosing saidweight, said horizontal plate, said movable mechanism, and said tripfork mechanism so that when said weight is moved out of said centralbore and retained on said horizontal plate by the cover and rattlesaround and ricochets off the interior of the cover, the ball therebystrikes said base member of said trip fork mechanism to activate thevalve closing means of said valve assembly to stop the flow of the fluidtherethrough.
 10. The shock actuated responsive mechanism in accordancewith claim 9, wherein said weight is a ball.
 11. The shock actuatedresponsive mechanism in accordance with claim 10 wherein said ball ismade of steel.
 12. The shock actuated responsive mechanism in accordancewith claim 9, wherein said base member is configured to be semi-circularin shape and has a contoured surface which faces the weight.
 13. Theshock actuated responsive mechanism in accordance with claim 12, whereinsaid contour of said base member is at an angle of approximately 45degrees to the horizontal.
 14. A shock actuated valve assembly having ashock actuated responsive mechanism comprising: a. a horizontal platehaving a bore therethrough in which a weight is supported and retainedcentrally on the horizontal plate; the horizontal plate attached to thevalve assembly; b. a movable mechanism movably attached to the valveassembly; c. a trip fork mechanism having a base member and means tomovably attach the trip fork mechanism to said movable mechanism, thetrip fork mechanism located adjacent to the horizontal base plate suchthat the base member faces said weight; and d. a cover enclosing saidweight, said horizontal plate, said movable mechanism, and said tripfork mechanism so that when said weight is moved out of said centralbore and retained on said horizontal plate by the cover and rattlesaround and ricochets off the interior of the cover, the weight therebystrikes said base member of said trip fork mechanism to activate saidvalve assembly to stop the flow of the fluid therethrough.
 15. The shockactuated responsive mechanism in accordance with claim 14, wherein saidweight is a ball.
 16. The shock actuated responsive mechanism inaccordance with claim 15, wherein said ball is made of steel.
 17. Theshock actuated responsive mechanism in accordance with claim 14, whereinsaid base member is configured to be semi-circular in shape and has acontoured surface which faces the weight.
 18. The shock actuatedresponsive mechanism in accordance with claim 17, wherein said contourof said base member is at an angle of approximately 45 degrees to thehorizontal.
 19. A vertical shock actuated valve assembly adapted toautomatically close off the flow of a controlled fluid through a conduitin response to a shock or vibration force of a predetermined magnitudeand having a shock actuated responsive mechanism comprising: a.horizontal plate having a bore therethrough in which a weight issupported and retained centrally on the horizontal plate, the horizontalplate attached to the valve assembly; b. a movable mechanism movablyattached to the valve assembly; and c. a trip fork mechanism having abase member and means to movably attach the trip fork mechanism to saidmovable mechanism, the trip fork mechanism located adjacent to thehorizontal base plate such that the base member faces said weight; d.whereby when the shock or vibration force is experienced by said shockactuated responsive mechanism, said ball is displaced when such forcereaches the predetermined magnitude causing said ball to roll out ofsaid bore to strike said trip fork mechanism to cause the trip forkmechanism to move in a horizontal direction to thereby actuate and closesaid valve assembly to stop the flow of the fluid therethrough.
 20. Theshock actuated responsive mechanism in accordance with claim 19, whereinsaid weight is a ball.
 21. The shock actuated responsive mechanism inaccordance with claim 20 wherein said ball is made of steel.
 22. Theshock actuated responsive mechanism in accordance with claim 19, whereinsaid base member is configured to be semi-circular in shape and has acontoured surface which faces the weight.
 23. The shock actuatedresponsive mechanism in accordance with claim 22, wherein said contourof said base member is at an angle of approximately 45 degrees to thehorizontal.
 24. A shock actuated valve having a shock responsivemechanism comprising: a. a horizontal plate having a bore therethroughin which a weight is supported and retained centrally on the horizontalplate and means for attaching to a main body of said shock actuatedvalve; and b. a trip fork mechanism having at least a portion locatedadjacent to said weight; c. whereby when the shock or vibration force isexperienced by said shock responsive mechanism, said weight is displacedwhen such force reaches the predetermined magnitude causing said weightto move out of said bore to strike said trip fork mechanism and cause itto move in a horizontal direction to thereby actuate and close saidshock actuated valve to stop the flow of the fluid therethrough.
 25. Theshock responsive mechanism in accordance with claim 24, wherein saidweight is a ball.
 26. The shock responsive mechanism in accordance withclaim 25, wherein said ball is made of steel.
 27. The shock responsivemechanism in accordance with claim 24, wherein said one end of saidhorizontal tube further comprises a beveled interior surface facing saidweight.
 28. The shock responsive mechanism in accordance with claim 24,further comprising a housing cover enclosing said weight, saidhorizontal plate and said horizontal tube so that when said weight ismoved out of said bore and retained on said horizontal plate by thehousing cover and rattles around and ricochets off the interior of thehousing cover, the weight thereby strikes said one end of said trip forkmechanism to activate said shock actuated valve to stop the flow of thefluid therethrough.